It was not the shadow banks that brought the US economy to its knees. The deleveraging of all manner of non-bank investment conduits, vehicles and structures certainly magnified the impact of falling house prices, and globalised the crisis. But the core of the problem was the same as in every other banking crisis: sloppy underwriting at mainstream lenders. For the US, read China. The latest data, showing a widening trade surplus while consumer inflation rises to 6.4 per cent, raise further the concerns about overheating. But despite angst over its shadow banking system, the big risks are probably embedded in the real one.
使美國經濟屈服的，並非「影子銀行」。對各種非銀行投資管道、投資工具和投資結構的去槓桿化，放大了房價不斷下跌的影響，並使危機全球化。然而問題的核心與任何其它銀行危機並無二致，即各大主要銀行的草率放貸。要理解美國的問題，看看中國的情況就知道了。最新數據顯示，中國貿易順差不斷擴大，同時居民消費價格指數漲至6.4%，進一步加劇了人們對經濟過熱的擔憂。但儘管人們對中國的影子銀行存有疑懼，真正巨大的風險，可能蘊含於真正的銀行中。